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AN 



ADDRESS 



DELIVERED BEFORE THE 



BERKSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY, 



AT PITTSPIEtSJ, 



OCTOBER 8, 1840. 







BY H. A. S. DEARBORN- 



PITTSPIHIiD : 

printed by phinehas allen and son. 
December, 1840. 



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ADDRESS. 



Gentlemen of the Societt, and Fellow-Citizens : — 

The first act of civilization was the cultivation of the earth * 
and during the progress of nations in the route of improvement, no other 
branch of industry has maintained such a direct, uniform, powerful and 
salutary influence. It has not only accomplished more than all the 
others, but has been the primary cause of those remarkable physical and 
moral developments which have been produced by the unceasing efforts 
of man, to ameliorate his condition and elevate his character. 

Agriculture clothes and feeds nearly the whole civilized population of 
the globe ; rigs, spreads the sails, and supplies the great bulk of the 
freight of navigation, and its multifarious products constitute the chief ar- 
ticles of trade. It has still other and higher claims to respect ; and among 
the most imposing, are its magnificent achievements and wide-spread con- 
quests ; and however inapplicable these belligerent terms may appear, 
when applied to that pacific pursuit, it is confidently believed that they 
have been more truly glorious than those of all the fleets and armies 
which have ever triumphed on the deep and on the land : but in such a 
gradual, noiseless and unobtrusive manner have they been accomplish- 
ed, that they have not attracted that marked attention of the historian to 
which they are so pre-eminently entitled. There was no remarkable 
movement, which became the subject of universal speculation and com- 
ment — no splendid event — no startling incident — no dazzling pageantiy, 
which either excited astonishment from their magnitude, or special and 
deep interest, from their direct or ultimate influence on the civil and mil- 
itary institutions of nations. Yet when attentively examined as the si- 
lent, peaceful and unostentatious, but momentous causes of human ad- 
vancement, and the extent of their influence is measured by the magni- 
tude and real value of the results, the seemingly rash assertion which 
has been made, instead of being in any degree extravagant, will be found, 
on a thorough investigation, to be fully sustained by an array of facts, 
which put incredulity at defiance. 

If wars and battles have rendered the names of victorious chieftains 
memorable throughout the world, has not agriculture given an infinitely 



more commendable, precious and lasting fame to those really great and 
good men, who have acquired distinction as the benefactors, rather than 
the exterminators of their race. Will not the admirable characters and 
eminent deeds of the latter, become more extensively known and more 
highly appreciated, as the bounds of human intelligence and civil liberty 
are enlarged, while the blood-stained laurels of the warrior will have per- 
ished, or be considered as revolting emblems of their crimes ; and their 
martial feats, instead of exciting respect and emulation, will be converted 
into subjects of indignant execration and abhorrence. 

The battle-field has been the common arena of reckless and unprinci- 
pled ambition, while true glory is only to be attained in the more honor- 
able fields of industry and intelligence. If, in the accomplishment of 
those arduous and long continued labors, by which the broad highway 
has been opened, and nations conducted onward in the majestic march of 
civilization, there was no individual exploit — no astounding display of gen- 
ius or daring act of valor, which stood forth in bold relief and command- 
ed universal applause, there was required and evinced as much personal 
bravery and moral firmness, as in the most desperate struggle of contend- 
ing gladiators, or the tremendous shock of armies. 

Our ever venerated forefathers, who colonized this holy land of Liber- 
ty, present a glorious illustration of the hazardous position which has been 
assumed. That noble band of fearless and high-souled Anglo-Saxons — 
that gallant forlorn-hope of civil and religious freedom, had no other re- 
liance than upon God and their own unaided efforts, for the accomplish- 
ment of the grand and sacred object of their expatriation. No naval 
squadrons or armies preceded or accompanied them in their perilous ex- 
periment, either to herald them on their way, or inspire confidence, or 
afford assistance and protection: And yet those humble cultivators of the 
earth assumed the lofty character and responsible position of champions 
for the rights of man, and boldly determined to encounter the dangers of 
the ocean, and seek, in a far distant and savage land, an asylum from 
persecution, rather than slavishly submit to the tyrannical decrees of a 
merciless sovereign, or meanly acquiesce in the arbitrary exactions of a 
vindictive hierarchy. 

The soldier and mariner voluntarily assume professions that involve 
the duty of sternly encountering those hardships and privations which 
are the inevitable accompaniments ; and there is besides, the constant 
and invigorating stimulus of anticipated rank, honors and fortune, as the 
certain rewards of distinguished actions. But those adventurous men 
who bid an eternal farewell to their native land, had no other incentive to 
urge them onward in that fearful moment, than an exalted spirit of liber- 



ty, and a sublime conception of religious duty. Who is there that can 
contemplate their forlorn, anxious and desperate condition, when assem- 
bled for the last time on the beloved shores of England, without being 
impressed with that indomitable zeal, that grandeur of purpose, that ele- 
vation of character, and that mighty moral effort which was there evinc- 
ed, when they first looked out upon that dark and wide waste of waters 
they were destined to cross, and then back towards the dearly cherished 
scenes of their childhood, which were so soon to be abandoned forever, 
Is there in all history a position named, or a scene described, more re- 
plete with thrilling interest, or where more of unwavering fortitude was 
required and displayed. It was the solemn advent of a long premeditat- 
ed self-banishment, and more awful in prospect than the exodus of the 
Israelites. A crisis had arrived in which the highest attributes of rea- 
son, the most dignified qualities of the heart, and a conscientious obedi- 
ence to the stern dictates of truth, justice and right, as well as the purest 
and most exalted principles of religion, were required to uphold them. 
How overwhelming must have been the excitement from an anticipation 
of the difficulties to be surmounted and the fearful uncertainty of the re- 
sult ; how bewildering the thronging reminiscences of the past, and 
the thick coming fancies of the future. Hope in the beneficent smiles of 
heaven, and confidence in the integrity of their motives, were the only 
cheering and soul-sustaining inducements to vigorous exertion on an oc- 
casion so momentous — in an enterprize so fraught with immediate peril 
and prospective calamities. 

The same adventurous spirit, irresistible perseverance and bold defi- 
ance of difficulties and dangers, have been conspicuously evinced in the 
settlement of every state and territory in the Union, Who is there that 
has not witnessed or heard of the sufferings which were resolutely en* 
dured by the emigrants that have successively gone forth into the inte- 
rior of this vast Republic — the innumerable privations and hardships they 
courageously encountered during their slow and toilsome progress into 
the boundless wilderness, and through their diversified and never ending 
labor and changes of condition, from the erection of the first rude hut, to 
the period of becoming independent proprietors of extensive farms and 
commodious habitations. 

Such are the efforts which the husbandman has made for the general 
benefit of man, and how wonderful are the results ] Only fifty years 
since, and the whole of that broad and lengthened region which extends 
from the fountains of the Atlantic rivers to the western verge of the vale 
of the Mississippi, was one entire wilderness. Now it contains eleven 
states and three flourishing territories, whose aggregate population 
amounts to more than seven millions. 



6 

These are the glorious achievements of untiring rural industry, — the 
splendid triumphs of civilization, — the indisputable victories and magnif- 
icent conquests of Agriculture. Yes, of Agriculture — for by the axe and 
the plough were laid the immense foundations on which was reared this 
mighty and prosperous Republic ; and its patriotic and independent yeo- 
manry now constitute at least seven-tenths of the entire population. 

From the experience of past ages, and the intelligence afforded by the 
diversified conditions of existing nations, it may be justly considered that 
the cultivation of the earth is the sure and solid basis on which empires 
are elevated in character, augmented in power, and rendered illustrious 
for their advancement in letters, science and the arts. 

But agriculture must have previously made considerable progress be- 
fore the arts can be introduced and established ; and even then they will 
be chiefly confined to the fabrication of the most necessary and least ex- 
pensive products of the mechanic. The increase of population and the 
diffusion of intelligence, gradually co-operate in exciting a spirit of ri- 
valry with the manufacturing skill of other countries ; and ingenuity and 
enterprize are ultimately called into vigorous and successful action, from 
motives of interest, and that liberal encouragement, which an enlight- 
ened patriotism finds it wise and expedient to extend towards every spe- 
cies of indigenous labor. 

Foreign commerce and navigation have sometimes existed contempo- 
raneously with agriculture and manufactures ; and when those four 
grand divisions of human industry at the same time exist, in any coun- 
try, and are harmoniously prosecuted, a position has been attained from 
whence the progress is certain, energetic and rapid towards the highest 
point of independence, moral excellence and grandeur, which man or na- 
tions can, or are destined to reach. 

But such a fortunate and firm union of those great and powerful inter- 
ests, has been seldom realized. Egypt was celebrated as the granary 
of the East, long before the highest of the arts were extensively culti- 
vated ; and even when they had been so far perfected as to render many 
of the fabrics of that country celebrated for their richness and beauty, 
and long after the superb cities of Thebes and Memphis were the won- 
der of the world, the intercourse with foreign nations by the means of 
commercial fleets must have been very limited ; for there was not an 
emporium of any distinction, either on the numerous estuaries of the 
Nile, or the coast of the Red Sea, before the conquest of the renowned 
empire of the Pharaohs by Alexander, and the establishment of that 
splendid city which still bears his name. 

The once mighty kingdoms of the Assyrians, Mcdes and Babylonians, 



were, from their interior positions, chiefly engaged in agricultural and 
manufacturing pursuits ; and it was not until the Phoenicians establish- 
ed Tyre, Carthage and other maritime cities in Arabia and Spain, that 
the seas were made subservient to trade, and became the grand high- 
ways of nations. 

Hindostan, China, Japan, and many of the other populous nations east 
of the Persian Gulf, had but very little reciprocal intercourse or trade 
with other portions of the globe ; and in fact were but imperfectly known, 
until the adventurous navigators of western Europe discovered the ocean 
route to India. 

The naval expedition of Nearchus, from the Indus to the mouth of the 
Euphrates, for transporting one division of the Macedonian army on its 
return towards Greece, seems to have been the only attempt to navigate 
that coast, after the alledged, but still doubtful voyages of the Tyrians, 
in those distant regions, during the reign of Solomon; and commercial 
enterprize did not extend expeditions, in that direction, even as far as the 
coast of Malabar, until long after that period, when the trade of the East, 
with the nations of western Asia and Europe, took the direction of the 
Euphrates and Palmyra, or through Egypt. 

Even at this late period, and after an uninterrupted intercourse with 
the ports and islands of southern Asia, for more than three centuries, 
Birmah, Siam, Annam and China have, with but partial exceptions, no 
other navigation than a few rude vessels, which are unskilfully employed 
in a very limited coasting trade ; so that neither of those nations are com- 
petitors with the Europeans and Americans in the commerce of the whole 
earth. They have ever been, as were the Hindoos, cultivators of the 
soil and artizans ; and when it is considered that the only mode of inter- 
communication throughout Asia and Africa, was, during all ancient 
times, and still is, to a very considerable extent, by unfrequent, dilatory 
and expensive lines of caravans, the amount of exports and imports, com- 
pared with the immense territory, population and wealth, must have been 
so very limited, that those nations cannot, with propriety, be regarded as 
having been commercial, any more than nautical, at any period of their 
existence. During and since the splendid eras of Phoenician, Greek and 
Roman supremacy, whenever and however the articles of oriental mer- 
chandize were exchanged for the products or treasures of the western 
empires, the means of transportation, whether by land or water, were 
furnished by the subjects of the latter, who thus secured the double ad- 
vantages arising from the trade, at each extremity of the line of transit. 

How different have been the results — how superior the character and 
condition of the people — how incomparably more imposing the attitude, 



8 

and how much more extensive the power and influence of those nation* 
whose every department of industry and intelligence become such im- 
portant subjects of individual inquiry and governmental consideration, 
that all are sure to be abundantly supplied with enlightened, active and 
zealous co-laborators ; and who, in each, are only ambitious to merit e- 
qual commendation and protection, and derive like advantages, without 
any disposition to disparage or do wrong to either of the others. 

Still, from the peculiar character and habits of the people, the form of 
government, or the geographical position of the country, there were but 
few instances in ancient times, in which such a happy combination of the 
industrial employments existed. While agriculture and manufactures 
flourished in some of the most extensive and celebrated of the oriental 
kingdoms, it is notorious that there was scarcely any other commercial 
transactions undertaken, than those which resulted from the interchange 
of the natural and artificial products of the different sections of each ; 
and others, being limited in territory, or possessing an unproductive soil, 
devoted their attention to the arts, and also became conspicuous for their 
nautical skill and commercial enterprize, — upon which they almost ex- 
clusively relied for obtaining the means of subsistence, and in the acqui- 
sition of wealth. 

Such were the Tyrians, Ionians and Athensens during the most palmy 
periods of their existence ; and in like manner did the Republics of Ven- 
ice and Genoa become celebrated as the marts of the whole globe, dur- 
ing a long succession of ages, after a renewal of the trade with the rich 
and prolific East. 

But it was not until a much later period, that examples were ex- 
hibited of nations, which were extensively agricultural, becoming, almost 
simultaneously, commercial and manufacturing. Holland, Great-Britain 
and Russia were among the earliest, and have been the most conspicu- 
ous of that class. 

The United States present the anomalous instance of a people who are 
distinguished for their immense agricultural industry, commercial enter- 
prize and nautical adventure ; and, at the same time, are dependant on 
foreign nations for a very large portion of the products of manufactories 
and the mechanic arts which they consume. 

Those hardy Teutonic tribes, whose fertile fields were laboriously re- 
claimed from the sea-laved marshes of the Netherlands, were celebrated 
for their woollen, linen, glass and metalic manufactures, before they 
boldly seized and triumphantly swayed the sceptre of the ocean, and their 
merchants became the princes of the earth. But it was not until the 
full influence of all those various and powerful incitements to action, — 
those alternate energetic causes and prosperousresults had been recip- 



9 

rocally experienced, that the vast delta of the Rhine was made to rival 
that of Egypt in the luxuriance of its harvest ; that every village was 
rendered memorable for its mechanical ingenuity ; that each harbor waa 
thronged with the richly laden fleets of commerce ; and that the chief 
cities became immense entrepots for the most valuable products of every 
clime. 

Great-Britain was neither a manufacturing or commercial nation, un- 
til after the reign of James 1., and it is the rapid and gigantic strides that 
have been made in those pursuits, within the last half century, which 
have given such an unexampled impulse to agriculture, as to render that 
kingdom the grand archetype of the world in all the branches of rural 
economy. 

Russia had made but little progress in the cultivation of the earth, and 
had neither manufactories or navigation until after Peter the Great as- 
cended the throne of that immense empire. Those numerous unciviliz- 
ed Scandinavian and other nomadick hordes, which extended from the 
shores of the Baltic sea to the Euxine, had been, for all previous time, 
proverbial for their barbarism ; and were scarcely known to southern 
Europe as a distinct nation, even as late as when colonies had been suc- 
cessfully established on the distant coast of America. Down to the close 
of the seventeenth century, ignorance so generally prevailed throughout 
that dark Cimmerian region, that it extended not only from the serf to 
the noble, but from the prince to the imperial palace. In fact, the history of 
that country for more than eight centuries previous to the reign of Peter 
I. is little else than the revolting narration of the perpetual feuds and 
sanguinary conflicts of the ferocious and ever roving tribes of Scythians, 
Tartars and Cossacks. If, at times, more startling or momentous events 
are recounted, they are of the same savage character, and only imposing 
from the number and vast extent of the armies, and the augmented hor- 
rors of their devastations ; for it mattered not whether a petty chieftain 
of a province commanded in the battle-field, or an Alaric, an Atilla or a 
Zenghis Khan, with their innumerable legions, rushed like a furious tem- 
pest from the Caspian sea to the German ocean. Still it was barbarian 
against barbarian, and the consequences of both were alike fatally de- 
structive to every effort and hope of civilization. While the deleterious 
influence of the one was local, in the other it was not merely universal, 
but fearfully augmented in potency and duration. 

Such was the degraded and apparently irremediable condition of Rus- 
sia, when the grand conception was first entertained, and the unprece- 
dented experiment boldly undertaken to elevate it, in character and con- 
sequence, to the highest point which had been attained by the most civi- 
lized and refined nations of ARsOriBhi. All the energies of that vigo- 



rous and expansive intellect with which the youthful monarch had been' 
so lavishly endowed, were roused into efficient action. But from the de- 
ficiency of his own education and that of his civil and military officers, as 
well as all the other classes of his numerous subjects, he was fully aware 
of the utter futility of attempting to accomplish those important objects 
before sufficient measures had been first taken for removing an impedi- 
ment that was so fatally adverse to even the possibility of success. 

For that purpose he exhibited the unprecedented phenomena of an ab- 
solute monarch descending from his throne, to travel, like the renowned 
Anacharsis, in foreign countries, for the express and noble purpose of ac- 
quiring knowledge, that he might propagate it among his countrymen. 
Successively visiting Holland, England, France, Hanover and Austria; 
he thoroughly examined, not only the various institutions of learning, the 
public works and manufacturing establishments of every denomination, 
but entered the workshops of the humblest mechanic, and actually la- 
bored for months as a ship carpenter in the dock-yards of Saardam and 
Deptford ; that he might acquire that practical information] and skill 
which would enable him to adroitly perform the double duties of a naval 
architect and constructor. 

Having, during a long absence from his dominions diligently observed 
every thing that was curious, interesting and valuable — every operation 
of genius and prosecution of art, he returned with his capacious mind 
richly stored with intelligence on all the chief subjects of his adventurous 
and untiring research; and was thus fully qualified to commence his glo- 
rious practical career, as the unrivalled benefactor of his country. 

He liberally invited the wisest and most learned men of every nation, 
as well as military and naval officers, mariners, mechanics and artists, to 
his dominions, that he might introduce all those sciences and branches 
of industry which could be rendered subservient to the speedy prosecu- 
tion and ultimate fruition of his magnificent plans for meliorating the con- 
dition of the people, and advancing the prosperity and power of the em- 
pire. 

So astonishingly rapid was the progress of improvement, that within 
the short period of twenty years the mechanical and fine arts were suc- 
cessfully cultivated, manufactories established, agriculture advanced, 
schools of medicine, botany and belles-lettres founded, galleries of paint- 
ings formed, armies efficiently organized, maritime cities created, and 
naval and commercial fleets launched on the Gulf of Finland, the ancient 
Boristhenes, the sea of Azof, the Caspian, and the Arctic ocean. 

Thus, the modern Lycurgus of the north, was soon enabled to rely 
upon the abundant resources of liisjfln*H»4*niinions, to clothe and subsist 



11 

an immense population — furnish ample means for prosecuting, by land 
and sea, those long protracted and expensive wars in which the combined 
armies of Sweden, Poland and Turkey were successively routed ; and 
the independence and power of Russia at last so completely and firmly 
established, by the decisive battle of Pultawa, that the formidable rival 
and ultimate conqueror of Charles the X1L, commanded the respect and 
admiration of Europe and Asia, from the grandeur of the position which 
his empire had so triumphantly attained. 

The first and second Catharine, and the emperors Alexander andNichr 
olas, faithfully and zealously prosecuted the vast plans which had been 
so wisely projected and successfully commenced by their illustrious an- 
cestor; and the astounding results have been fully commensurate, with 
the unlimited resources, and original gigantic conception, of that pro- 
spective imposing attitude, which the Russian empire was destined to 
assume among the greatest nations of the earth. 

If, therefore, the genius and capacity for achievements are to be esti- 
mated by the only decisive test, — the results, Peter I. was the most won- 
derful and greatest of sovereigns, if not of men, that has ever lived. 

The like enlarged and enlightened policy has produced equally favora- 
ble and cheering effects, in every nation in which it has been effectually 
introduced and as steadily pursued. Whenever and wherever a liberal 
encouragement has been extended to enterprize, and a just and faithful 
protection afforded to national industry, the individuals, in each of its mul- 
tifarious branches, have uniformly advanced in morals, intelligence and 
happiness, while their united labor and skill have given an immense ac- 
celeration to the improvement and prosperity of the whole country. 

The grand experiment which has been so successfully made in Rus- 
sia is, therefore, only astonishing, from the strong contrast which is there - 
by presented, between her existing position and that low and degraded 
state from which she has been elevated. Yet while Russia was steadily 
advancing towards that high level which the other nations of Europe had 
then attained, some of the latter, by constantly adhering to the same en- 
larged system of political economy, which the able monarch of that em- 
pire had so skilfully introduced, were still moving onward with a perpet- 
ually increasing momentum ; and have exhibited developments much 
more remarkable for their grandeur and beneficent influence, not only on 
the people of the intelligent governments where they have occurred, but 
upon the whole human family. 

If we look back to the condition of Great-Britain, France, the German- 
ic States and this country, at the period when Russia commenced her 
refulgent course of improvement, and compare it with the position which 



12 

they have now acquired, there will be found as much to excite astonish- 
ment and merit commendation, as has been presented in the eventful 
history of that nation. 

The trade and navigation of England was of the humblest character, 
and remained nearly stationary from the time of the invasion by William 
the Conqueror, until the accession of Queen Elizabeth to the crown. The 
exports consisted chiefly of lead, tin, wool, leather and a few other pro- 
ducts of the soil, and the kingdom was dependent on foreign countries 
for wheat and nearly all the manufactured articles which were then con- 
sumed. The minor art of making paper was not brought to perfection 
until 1713, and as late as 1740 nearly all the iron which was used, was 
imported from the ports of the Baltic, and most of the fabrics of wool, 
linen and silk, and the manufactories of glass, earthen ware, gold and sil- 
ver were brought from Holland, France, Genoa and Venice. 

During the reign of the British Semiramis encouragement was given 
to the cultivation of the cereal grains, and the exportation of wool was 
prohibited. Special privileges were offered to the persecuted Walloons 
of Holland, the Huguenots of France and the artists of other countries, to 
induce them to emigrate and establish woollen, silk, linen and other man- 
ufactories in England. Commercial treaties were negociated with the 
Ottoman Porte and the Grand Duke of Muscovy, for opening a trade with 
the East Indies and the Levant. Admiral Drake was sent on a voyage 
of discovery round the world, and Sir Walter Raleigh, with many other 
adventurers, were aided in expeditions for establishing colonies and open- 
ing a trade in North and South America. 

Still the progress in ship building, for commercial purposes, had been 
so limited, that the import and export trade was almost exclusively con- 
ducted by foreigners, until the celebrated navigation act was passed, du- 
ring the ever memorable administration of Oliver Cromwell. 

But it was not before the reign of William and Mary that agriculture, 
manufactures, foreign trade and navigation began to make a decided and 
vigorous onward movement. Even as late as the commencement of the 
eighteenth century, and during the brilliant reign of Queen Ann, the 
commercial fleet of the kingdom was estimated at only about 70,000 
tons, and now it numbers 25,000 vessels, whose aggregate tonnage is 
2,783,000. The annual consumption of grain has increased to 240,000,- 
000 of bushels, all of which is generally raised in the country. The pro- 
ducts of agriculture of every kind in the year 1838, have been valued at 
the enormous sum of $1,250,000,000, and those of manufactories amount 
to $750,000,000. 

From 1792 to 1839, the population of the United Kingdom has increas- 
ed, from 12,680,000 to 27,250,000 ; aod the exports have arisen from 



13 

25,000,000 to 105,000,000, and the imports from 19,659,000 to 61,268,- 
000 of pounds sterling. 

The invention of the steam engine, and the substitution of machinery 
for manual labor, with the consequent development of the powers of those 
two grand elements of national industry, coal and iron, have been the 
chief causes of that tremendous impetus which has been given to the 
arts in Great-Britain. With the aid of machinery, one hundred persons 
can manufacture as much cotton, as would have required ten thousand 
only forty years since ; and the cotton now manufactured in that coun- 
try, would require, without the aid of labor-doing machinery, 10,000,000 
workmen; and all the various articles which are thus made, could not be 
manufactured by 200,000,000 of men. This is but a faint sketch of the 
remarkable changes which have been produced in England; but the route 
of Hercules is recognized by his tracks. 

It may be truly said, that Great-Britain has attained a more exalted 
position than has ever been reached by any other nation. In letters and 
science; in the useful and ornamental arts ; in agriculture, trade, naviga- 
tion and manufactures ; in prosperity, riches and power ; in eloquence 
and arms ; in the refinements and embellishments of civilization ; in the 
grandest efforts of genius and most brilliant displays of talent; in all that 
elevates man and nations, that kingdom is a glorious example for the 
whole globe. It may there be seen how far the human race can be ad- 
vanced, when the interests and rights of the people, and the grandeur of 
the nation, become the main subjects of consideration on the part of the 
most enlightened men and of the government* 

Situated on the northern frontier of the eastern continent, England is 
a perpetual presentation of the blessings which are derived from well di- 
rected industry, and of the potent influence of freedom of thought and of 
action. But what is far more important, she is a copious fountain as well 
as the impregnable fortress of the principles of liberty, and a glad and en- 
couraging exemplification of what can be achieved by man, to the honest 
advocates of the rights of man, throughout all the nations of Europe. 

As we are of the same Anglo-Saxon blood ; speak the same language ; 
have derived our political, municipal and economical institutions, laws, lite- 
rature, science and arts; our habits, manners and customs from England, 
and have thus far followed in her brilliant wake, throughout the whole 
extent of the capacious channels of intelligence and industry, on which 
she has been so majestically borne — is it not certain that we shall con- 
tinue in our career, until we shall have been as successful in imitating 
her agricultural and manufacturing skill, as we have thus far done in 
commercial and nautical enterprize. 

The influence of precedent is infinitely more powerful than the abstract 



14 

teachings of philosophy. The one actively instructs by practical experi- 
ment, and the other vainly attempts it by inconsequential counsel. The 
effect of the former cannot fail of being as great, and the beneficial con- 
sequences as fully experienced on this, as they have been on the other 
side of the Atlantic. 

The territory of the United States was an entire wilderness at the 
epoch when the great Russian reformer began his imperial experiment. 
The colonies of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay were not established 
until more than a quarter of a century after that period ; and at the com- 
mencement of the revolutionary war, the population of the Union did not 
amount to three millions. Having been arbitrarily restricted in commer- 
cial and nautical enterprize, and absolutely prohibited from establishing 
manufactories and many of the mechanical trades, during the whole per 
riod of our colonial vassalage, the products of the fisheries, the Indian 
fur trade, the forest and of agriculture, were the only articles of export ; 
and this very limited trade was almost exclusively confined to England 
and her West India islands ; and from that unyielding system of mono- 
poly which has ever been rigidly observed by Great-Britain, we were 
compelled to depend on that nation solely, for all the articles of foreign 
production which were consumed in this country. England was then , 
in sober truth, "all the world to us" — for from her native and colonial 
ports alone, came the merchandize of every other clime. 

It was not, therefore, until the hallowed war for National Indepen- 
dence, drove back the patriotic citizen upon the natural resources of his 
own country and the inventive energies of his own mind, that those sci- 
ences and arts were zealously cultivated, which could be rendered tri- 
butary to the increased demand of his suddenly changed condition, as 
well as that of the new-born nation, and the various branches of indus- 
trial labor, made to flourish, in a manner that gave promise of success. 

Yet, however laborious were the habits and prolific the inventive gc- 
nius of the emancipated American, under such urgent and peculiar cir- 
cumstances — such powerfully impelling incitives to energetic action, it 
was soon discovered, after peace had been concluded, that governmental 
protection was required against foreign competition, to enable the farmer, 
the mechanic, the merchant, the manufacturer, the ship-owner and the 
fisherman, to successfully prosecute their various branches of industry. 

From these considerations, the most enlightened and patriotic states- 
men of that momentous period, were induced to earnestly recommend, 
and finally enabled to succeed, in the establishment of a national govern- 
ment, which, in the words of the constitution, would better " promote 
the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to themselves 
and their posterity." 



15 

It is, therefore, not surprizing, that among the most important subjects 
Which the illustrious Washington urged upon the attention of the first 
Congress which assembled under the great charter of our liberties, were — 

" THE ADVANCEMENT OF AGRICULTURE, COMMERCE AND MANUFACTURES 

THE PROMOTION OF SCIENCE AND LITERATURE THE EXPEDIENCY OF GIVING 

EFFECTUAL ENCOURAGEMENT TO THE EXERTIONS OF SKILL AND GENIUS, IN 
PRODUCING NEW AND USEFUL INVENTIONS AND OF FACILITATING THE IN- 
TERCOURSE BETWEEN DISTANT PARTS OF THE COUNTRY." 

In accordance with these enlarged views, laws were successively pass- 
ed for encouraging and fostering those all-important objects ; and such 
has been the salutary influence of a continued protective policy, that the 
annual productions of woollen manufactories, amount to 40,000,000, of 
cotton, to 60,000,000, and including those of all other materials, to 350,- 
000,000 of dollars ; and adding the earnings of agriculture, and every 
other branch of industry, the national production has been estimated, by 
one of the most distinguished statistical authors of our country, at $1,- 
200,000,000. 

The navigation of the United States has been augmented in a like re- 
markable manner, as the vessels employed in the coasting and foreign 
trade and the fisheries, now exceed 2,000,000 tons ; being more than two- 
thirds as much as that of Great-Britain, and nearly quadruple that of 
France. The increase in population has been quite as extraordinary, for 
it must exceed, at this time, 15,000,000. 

From the facts which are to be obtained from the history of those na- 
tions that have become the most distinguished for their progress in ma- 
nufactures, trade and navigation, it is apparent that agriculture has ever 
kept in the advance, and been not only the creator and pioneer, but the 
foundation and perpetual support of each and all of them. 

Li Great-Britain, where manufactures and navigation have been the 
most fostered, and have flourished the most within the last century, it 
has been ascertained that the persons employed in agriculture, amount 
to over 9,000,000, while those engaged in the industrial arts were less 
than 4,000,000. Not half of the latter, however, were employed in pro- 
ducing articles for the foreign markets, while neither the number of peo- 
ple or the wealth acquired by them, was a fourth part of that which is 
produced and maintained by the agricultural industry. 

Agriculture in the United States, besides supplying the demand for 
home consumption, furnishes three-fourths of the exports of domestic ar- 
ticles and, manufactures only a tenth. The disparity, however, between 
the exports of the raw material and of manufactures, is conclusive evi- 
dence that we have not sufficiently extended the latter, and are too much 
dependent upon other nations for articles, which could be as well made 
in our own, 



16 

Although the products of agriculture in Great-Britain so much exceed 
those of manufactories, nearly the whole of her exports, which amount to 
more than 500,000,000 of dollars, are manufactured articles ; and only 
one-third of the exports of France are the products of agriculture ; and 
that third chiefly consists of wine and fruits, which are in a complete 
state for consumption, and therefore cannot be enhanced in value, like 
the raw materials for mechanical industry ; and of course constitute prop- 
er articles of export, as the surplus avails of indigenous labor, beyond 
the demand for home consumption." 

But China and Japan present the most remarkable illustrations of that 
problem in political economy, as to how far a reliance may be reposed 
upon the internal industry and trade of a nation— the latter of which 
Adam Smith avers, in his great work on the Wealth of Nations. " to be 
worth all the foreign commerce put together. 

Japan, although the area of its territory is double that of Great-Bri- 
tain and Ireland, and the population considerably larger, yet it has no fo- 
reign trade, except through the medium of one or two Dutch ships, and) 
a very few Chinese, which are allowed to visit the single port of Nau- 
gassaki. So rigorous are the laws for regulating the intercourse with 
foreign nations, that the natives are absolutely prohibited from leaving* 
the country for any purpose, under the severe penalty of not being allow* 
ed ever again to return. 

China has an area of 5,250,000 square miles, and is therefore more 
than forty times as large as Great-Britain, with a population of 300,000,- 
000, and still the marine intercourse with other nations is inconsidera- 
ble, for the value of the foreign products imported, exclusive of opium, 
amounts to only about fifteen or twenty millions of dollars, and the ex- 
ports are less than 50,000,000. 

The industry of that nation must consequently depend almost entirely 
upon the internal market, and a limited trade with the bordering nations* 
for the disposal of its products ; and which, if we assume as the data on 
which to form an estimate, the agricultural, manufacturing and mecha- 
nical labor of England, it must be truly enormous ; for the value of the 
products of the soil would exceed $15,000,000,000, and those of all other 
kinds of industry $9,000,000,000. 

China, like Japan, has but little navigation engaged in foreign trade, 
and that is chiefly limited to the islands of the Eastern Archipelago, and 
a few of the ports east of Coromandel. 

How great and striking is the difference of the industrial condition of 
the United States, when contrasted with that of the two last nations 
which have been named, as well as with that of some of the most flour- 
ishing kingdoms of Europe. If the former nations have carried their re* 



17 

strictions on foreign trades too far, is it. not possible that a still greater 
error has been committed in this, by opening too wide the gates of com- 
merce, and giving a greater freedom to the introduction of the products 
of foreign industry, than is warranted by a just regard to the interests of 
our own citizens, or is consistent with those great conservative princi- 
ples of national policy, by which the most enlightened nations of Europe 
are governed. 

The manufactured articles imported into this country in 1838, amount- 
ed to $80,000,000 ; and although the value of our manufactures of wool 
and cotton is at least $100,000,000, yet the imported fabrics of those ma- 
terials, exceed 20,000,000, and including those of silk, the metals and 
other substances, the amount received during the last ten years, has been 
more than $700,000,000. 

With a population only one-fifth less, and an actually settled territory 
fifteen times larger than that of Great-Britain, the wool annually pro- 
duced in the United States is only 30,000,000 of pounds, while in the 
former it amounts to 160,000,000, or more than five times as much. 

The nations of the Eastern continent have pursued a much more re- 
stricted system than has been ever adopted in this, in relation to foreign 
intercourse ; and very generally given to their own subjects, almost the 
exclusive privilege of furnishing, not only such products of the soil and 
of manufactories as are required for home consumption, but an amount 
of both sufficient to pay for the raw material to import from other coun- 
tries, as well as for all such other articles of merchandize, as are not in- 
digenous, and do not come in competition with those that can be supplied 
by native industry and skill. 

The statistical statements which are occasionally published by this 
and the European governments, in relation to those subjects, furnish the 
most ample elements for ascertaining the practical operation of the sys- 
tems of political economy, which have been adopted on both sides of the 
Atlantic. 

The exports of Great-Britain to France in 1838, were valued at only 
1,500,000, to Russia 1,700,000, and to all Europe but 24,000,000 pounds 
sterling; while to the United States they exceeded $62,000,000. Thus 
it appears that with less than a sixth of the population of Russia, the ex- 
ports to this country are more than seven times the value of those sent 
to that empire, and amount to more than half of the shipments to all the 
other continental nations, whose aggregate population is 210,000,000, or 
fourteen times that of the United States ; and when the value of British 
manufactures which are consumed in Russia, is but ten cents per head, 
it amounts to at least five dollars for every soul in this country. 

The cotton exported from this republic amounts to 596,000,000 of 



18 

pounds, and is valued at $61,556,000 ; but if it was manufactured pre- 
viously to its being shipped, the products would be worth $440,000,000, 
and thus give an additional income to the industry of the country of 
$378,000,000, which would be nearly quadruple the amount of our whole 
exports of domestic products. 

Whether it is expedient that a different policy should be adopted, and 
more efficient encouragement extended to native industry — or that it 
should be left entirely to its own unaided efforts to more successfully 
compete with that of other nations, not only in the attempt to supply the 
demand for home consumption, but also in foreign markets — or that it is 
better, our reliance on foreign, rather than native industrial labor, 
should be still greater than it ever has been and now is, are grave and" 
highly important questions which cannot fail to excite the profound at- 
tention of every intelligent citizen, as well as that of the state and na- 
tional governments.- 

It would not be proper, on an occasion like this, to attempt their solu- 
tion, even if I were capable ; or to advance an opinion, however well 
founded it might be deemed, as to the decision which should be made. 
The investigation opens a wide field of inquiry, and the rights and inte- 
rests of all classes of society, and of every section of the country, are to 
be seriously considered, when subjects so deeply interesting to each are 
to be definitely acted upon. 

The facts which have a bearing on those momentous questions, may 
and should be carefully examined, and such inquiries prosecuted as will 
best tend to enlighten and direct the understanding, and designate the 
course, which, after the most mature deliberation, justice and wisdom 
Bhall recommend as the most expedient to be pursued. Relying, there- 
fore, on the intelligence of the people and the rectitude of those states- 
men and legislators whose duty it is to decide, it is confidently believed, 
when the period arrives, that it shall be deemed necessary this great ques- 
tion in political economy should be definitely settled, such measures will 
be adopted as are honestly considered to be indispensably necessary, and 
are the best calculated to advance the interests of every American citi- 
zen, and the most certainly promote the general weal. 

From the geographical position of this county, its citizens cannot be 
immediately concerned in navigation or foreign commerce ; but the di- 
rect influence which those pursuits have upon their own, being continu- 
ally experienced, they cannot fail of feeling a deep interest in them ; for 
whatever tends to increase or diminish the amount of the former, must 
inevitably affect the farmer and manufacturer. In fact, so intimately 
connected are all the branches of national industry, and so dependent are 
they upon each other, that the reciprocal benefits are ever found to be 



19 

the greatest when the whole are prosperous ; and the depression of any 
one is invariably injurious to all the others. 

But as the main reliance of the people of Berkshire for obtaining the 
means of subsistence, and the advancement of their prosperity, comfort 
and affluence, must be reposed upon their agricultural labors and skill 
in the useful arts, they will ever be the chief subjects of anxious and 
profound consideration. It is to the inexhaustible treasures of the well 
tilled and teeming earth, that a large majority have directed the unre- 
mitted attention and unwearied labor of their lives. If their prospect of 
rapid accumulation and ultimate wealth is not as alluring — if the wings 
of hope do not appear as resplendent in the iridescent tints of future suc- 
cess, as in some of the other more attractive vocations of their country- 
men, they have the more certain and cheering consolation, that their 
paths will be screwed with those amaranthine flowers, whose rich fra- 
grance is the balmy breath of virtue and piety ; that they are not sub- 
ject to that sudden decadence, and those awful precipitations, from the 
giddy heights of prosperity, which are so fearfully common in the more 
hazardous pursuits of the merchant, navigator and manufacturer; and the 
yet more perilous course of ambition, for the acquisition of honorable dis- 
tinction, and the temporary and unstable power of official exaltation. 

Unexposed to the appalling storms of adversity, from the quietude of 
their retired and secure position, the sun-shine of perpetual peace illu- 
mines and gilds the present, and lights them onward in the full enjoy- 
ment of contented hearts, and the confident anticipation of still more sub- 
stantial and exalted fruitions in the vast and glorious future. 

May it not then be firmly asserted, has it not been verified by centu- 
ries of experience ; illustrated by the practical examples of the most en- 
lightened and distinguished men, and sanctioned by the governments of 
the most civilized and powerful nations in all ages, that the cultivation 
of the earth is the most manly pursuit of man ; the most beneficent to his 
species; the most important to his country; the most conducive to phys- 
ical energy, intellectual development, moral improvement and excel- 
lence of character, and the most certain route to all those sources of im- 
pecable enjoyment in which he has been destined to participate ; and at 
the same time to rendef "him worthy of that eternal felicity to which his im- 
mortal spirit unceasingly aspires, and with such an irresistible ardor, that 
even scepticism ceases to doubt, and infidelity stands rebuked, by the 
ever warning voice of that divinity within us, which appeals in such thril- 
ling and commanding accents, to the roused soul of every man, however 
humble or exalted. 

An ardent attachment to the country, and an admiration of forests, 
mountains and picturesque scenery, are the results of early education — 



20 

of high intellectual attainments — of fostered sentiment and encouraged 
fancy — of a vivid perception of the heautiful and grand — the true and the 
sublime, in the innumerable and infinitely diversified and wondrous realms 
of creation. This is not an imaginary assumption, or a dreamy, insub- -7^ 
stantial and speculative hypothesis ; but a well founded and long recog- 
nized truth, which has been fully confirmed by the literature and elo- 
quence of all nations, and the united testimony of erudition and genius, 
from the days of Homer to those of Cicero, Shakespeare, Milton, Chat- 
ham and Scott. Yes, their transcendentally grand and imperishable mo- 
ral efforts and practical illustrations are conclusive, that a taste for the 
sublime and beautiful, in the works of nature and of art, is induced, en- 
larged and matured, in proportion to the extension of knowledge. It is 
then that the wisdom, omnipotence and bounty of the Almighty, become 
apparent in the boundless immensity of their scope. 

But it is not the physical elements, the external aspect, the palpable 
consistence and perceptible qualities of the objects of nature, which are 
alone admirable. Besides an acquaintance with those scientific laws 
which regulate and explain the phenomena peculiar to each, and those 
curious and interesting researches which are required to ascertain how 
far any of them may be rendered useful to man, there are other inquiries 
which, if not as important, are still sufficiently consequential, to merit 
the attention of the learned and grave benefactors of mankind. 

In the vegetable kingdom alone, how numerous are the subjects of in- 
vestigation, either from their immediate connexion with the labors and 
interests of every department of rural economy, or their direct bearing 
on the other numerous branches of industry. The zeal which is awa- 
kened, from a minute examination of the humblest details, in the wide- 
spreading domain of agriculture, who lias not experienced, that can be 
excited on any occasion, or stimulated into action for any purpose. 

But there are yet other views, which if not so valuable, are most wor- 
thy of observation. The history of agriculture reveals some of the most 
extraordinary facts which are associated with the civilization of the hu- 
man race ; and if not of a miraculous character, they are evincive of an 
indomitable propensity in man, or an eternal Jwterof his nature, to pre- <^*-*o 
serve and transmit, from generation to generation, the most precious of 
the gifts which were conferred upon him, when first "sent forth to till 
the ground from whence he was taken." 

It is not more remarkable than true, that all the cereal grains, and most 
of the esculant plants, fruits and flowers, as well as all domestic animals, 
which have been and still are appropriated for administering to the sub- 
sistence, comfort and pleasure of man, are not novv^o be found in a state 



21 

of nature, as indigenous to any particular clime, or were they ever, at 
any period of the world, as far back as the record of nations extend; but 
they appear to have been specially selected by the Almighty, and pre- 
sented to the first family of our race, when excluded from Eden, and com- 
manded to till the earth. They are named as the products of the field, 
and the inseparable companions of man, in the primitive book of the Old 
Testament. Pliny, the encyclopaedist of antiquity, accurately describes 
them in his great work on natural history, as objects that were as uni- 
versally known and appreciated, and as indispensable to nations as at the 
present period ; and notwithstanding the extensive researches which bot- 
anists and zoologists have made, within the last century, and to whuni 
the whole earth has been exposed for examination, by the discoveries and 
explorations of commercial enterprise and nautical adventure, who has 
seen,, in any region, wherever man did not transport them, the camel or 
the horse, the ox or sheep, the ever faithful dog, or the invaluable and 
child-petted birds of the farm-yard, and which have been the constant as- 
sociate,of the husbandman, since the days of Jubal. 

Who has gathered wheat, barley, rye or maize, or any of the most com- 
mon culinary vegetables or fruits, where they have not been propagated 
by man? If the original types of some of those different species of ani- 
mals and plants, are presumed to still exist, and that each has been 
brought to the state in which it is now seen, by a long continued process 
of culture and amelioration, it must be considered as an hypothesis, which 
neither facts or philosophy will verify or support — -for some of Ihem are 
not only anomalous in genus or species, but the varieties are as peculiar 
and marked, as at the earliest period of their known existence. But what 
is still more confirmatory of their singular history and indicated origin, 
and especially in respect to the grains and many of the garden vegeta- 
bles — they absolutely require artificial aid to be reared and perpetuated ; 
so that the decree, "in the sweat of his face man should eat bread," is to 
be literally understood, since the materials of which it is formed require 
10 be laboriously cultivated, for neither wheat or corn perpetuate them- 
selves in any climate, but must be scattered in the earth, and tilled by 
the hand of man, or they perish. 

There is another remarkable phenomenon connected with this very in- 
teresting subject. As nations have declined in prosperity and civiliza- 
tion, or the people have sought a refuge from adversity in more inviting 
regions, there appears to have been designated, as by a super-human 
power, even among the poorest and least enlightened colonist?, some pa- 
triarch, some rural Noah, who rescued the most valuable and beautiful 
of the variety of animals and plants, from the universal devastation, and 
bore them successjpty onward, across the great ocean of time ; and as 



22 

the green hills of intelligence and human improvement appeared above 
the boundless waste, each in succession became an Arrarat to some of 
the chosen families of rustic industry, where luxurient gardens and well 
tilled fields — " the lowing herd" and " drowsy tinklings of the distant 
fold," as emphatically announced the preservation and perpetuity of hus- 
bandry and the attendant arts, as did the bow which was set in the heav- 
ens by the hand of omnipotence, "that seed time and harvest, and cold 
and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night should never cease." 

Thus have they passed from empire to empire — from isle to isle, and 
from continent to continent, until they are scattered over every portion 
of the globe where civilized man has appeared. 

It is equally as extraordinary, that during the protracted decadence of 
those once flourishing and mighty kingdoms of western Asia, and the 
shores of the Mediterranean, a taste for the ornamental, as well as the 
useful, in cultivation, should have been cherished and survived their final 
destruction, and was perpetuated even during that dark and gloomy night 
of ignorance and barbarism, which for centuries enveloped the earth. Aa 
nation after nation went down, there was selected from among the innu- 
merable varieties of plants which had successively embellished the su- 
perb garden of Ninevah, Babylon, Jerusalem and Carthage, and the sump- 
tuous villas of the Ptolomies and the Caesars, the most precious and beau- 
tiful ; and wherever civilized man has since wandered, they have as in- 
variably been his companions as his house-hold gods, and as dearly priz- 
ed. They are to be seen in every cottage enclosure of the European 
peasant and of the American citizen, however humble, from the borders 
of the ocean to the western confines of the Union. 

Thus, they are not only the emblems, but the trophies and conclusive 
evidence of an antecedent and exalted state of civilization, as well as the 
certain indications of the progress which has been made in moral im- 
provement and intellectual cultivation ; for who is there that has travel- 
led in foreign countries or their own, that has not been enabled to esti- 
mate the relative condition of entire communities and of families, from 
the greater or less attention which has been bestowed upon ornamental 
cultivation. It is the crowning wreath of individual and national exalta- 
tion ; and a single vase of flowers in the window, or a rare plant beside 
the door-way, as distinctly indicate the character of the inmates of each 
habitation, whether it be conspicuous for an ostentatious magnificence or 
rude simplicity of structure, as does a beacon-light the certainty of an 
approach to land, to the far-off mariner. 

Such are the pleasing effects and proof of those numerous combined 
causes, which have been and still are in succesafcjl»operation, to urge 



23 

forward the noble work of reformation and improvement in man and na- 
tions. 

It was to induce a more correct and higher estimate of the paramount 
advantages of husbandry, to excite and foster a sincere respect and ar- 
dent attachment to rural pursuits, to encourage native industry and ge- 
nius, to collect and diffuse practical information among the whole people, 
to reward experiment, and thus to elevate to their just level the cultiva- 
tors of the soil and their meritorious co-laborators in the arts, that your 
society was established ; and the exhibition of the numerous products of 
the earth and of house-hold, mechanical and manufacturing skill which 
have been witnessed on this occasion, are honorable testimonials of the 
advantages which have been derived from the institution. 

There seems to have here been, in full action, that spirit of enterprize, 
zeal for advancement and power of execution, which now pervade the old 
and new world ; and so surprisingly great have already been the results— 
so mighty the impulse which has been given to intellect and industry, 
and so perpetually is it being augmented, that the possible realizations 
of the future may well be considered as far beyond the power of calcu- 
lation. 

So extraordinary have been the times in which we have lived— so won- 
derful the events which have occurred — so numerous and astonishing the 
discoveries of science — so momentous and various the revolutions in the 
condition of man and of nations, that, compared with by-gone ages, the 
whole appear like the unsubstantial creations of a fervid imagination. 

Why and how is it, that such an universal excitement prevails through- 
out the earth, in relation to the improvement of the moral and physical 
condition of man ? What is the incipient cause and propulsive motive 
that has induced such an intense interest and directed such an eager at- 
tention tyflflf? io-hts, wants, comforts and general welfare of the people 7 
Whence' is it,'* that for the first time since the organization of empires, 
we now behold the most eminent men in every department of human 
knowledge, in every rank and station of society, instituting inquiries 
which have for their object the reformation of government, the diffusion 
of instruction, the encouragement of industry, the promotion of individ- 
ual happiness, the development of the resources, and the extension of 
the power and glory of nations 1 

This is the answer to all these interrogations. Truth and fact have 
become the only objects which are deemed worthy of research, or enti- 
tled to consideration. Principle has assumed the place of hypothesis, util- 
ity established as the standard of thought and invention, and progression 
recognized as the only proper aim and test of well directed personal ex- 
ertion and wise national administration. Speculation and theory have 



24 

ceased to excite attention and respect ; and when discoveries are announc- 
ed, they are subjected to the stern scrutinies of talent and erudition, and 
the rigorous ordeal of practical experiment. This is not all, for it is not 
sufficient that they have been demonstrated to be correct in principle and 
certain in application; but they must also be clearly proved to be advan- 
tageous, beneficial, profitable and useful, or they are pronounced worth- 
less. This, therefore, may be emphatically called the age of UTILITY. 

Truth alone now holds the sceptre of power, and aided by principle 
and fact, wages a war of extermination against the delusions of igno- 
rance, the follies of custom, the corruptions of error and the wrongs of 
oppression. 

Science and the arts have been practically united for the first time 
since they were known, and become powerful auxiliaries in the glorious 
cause of civilization. By their harmonious and vigorous co-operation, 
the facilities of inter-communication have been so astonishingly extend- 
ed, that oceans are crossed, and the length of continents traversed with 
such celerity, that it. appears as if an arch had been thrown across the 
broad abyss of space and time, and thus approximated the most distant 
regions and events. 

The physical and moral worlds are beheld from numerous commanding 
points of view, which are the acquisitions of modern discovery. Thejr 
summits have been gained by the long and laborious efforts of genius and 
learning, and there they have reared the lofty watch-towers of intelligence, 
from whence the eagle-eye of philosophy ranges over the infinite expanse 
of the universe ; beholds from afar the grand movements of the material 
and intellectual creation ; looks back upon the past for the elements of 
inductive wisdom ; examines the present to be instructed by its revela- 
tions, and with a prescient amplitude of vision, descries the looming fu- 
ture in all its sublime immensity, and thronged, swift-UBMbtt: conse- 
quences. C<3YJl&HU'Z > 






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